Agro business training helps farmers manage their money

A Four-day agriculture business training is helping a group of farmers learn how to manage their money to save for the future.
The farming business training was facilitated by AgBook Agribusiness Training and Advisory Ltd.
AgBook Agribusiness Training and Advisory representative Nicole Isifu says: “Many farmers do not know how money comes in and when money goes out and borrowing money is a big problem,” he said.
“People borrow and borrow and do not have money to repay their debts.
“AgBook’s learning development framework includes inspiring minds, starting with understanding what you know and do not know, concepts and practices challenging to understand what others want and actions to transform new awareness and knowledge to ongoing behaviour.”
Thirty-seven farmers from four wards in Pomio, East New Britain, participated in the training.
She said income generation in the wards was low because they only had copra and a few variety of vegetables and the market was far away.
“Farming is not just about farm, it is a business and we want to change the mindset of the farmers to see their farms as a business and to treat it as a business,” she added.
Isifu said the Government needed to support agriculture by supporting local investments and businesses and developing the skills of farmers to successfully farm as a business.
Pomio Seventh-Day Adventist pastor Johny Kamai said the farmers learnt new skills and knowledge.
“We have the capacity and the potential to grow the local economy but the market is far away,” she said.
“If farmers have to go to the market in Kokopo, they have to spend more with the freights.
Isifu said the training was conducted in partnership with the Seventh Day-Adventist Church under the Adventist Development and Relieved Agency.